Dempsey named in US squad for qualifier

04 February 2013 06:16

Tottenham's Clint Dempsey and AZ Alkmaar's Jozy Altidore were selected on Monday in the US squad for Wednesday's crucial North American final-round World Cup 2014 qualifying opener at Honduras.

Mexico, Jamaica, Costa Rica and Panama are also competing for three berths at stake in Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF) qualifying.

The fourth-place team will face the Oceania winner for another berth in next year's World Cup finals in Brazil.

"We want to have a sense of urgency right from the start of the final Round," US coach Jurgen Klinsmann said. "We have a lot of respect for Honduras, but our message to the team is that we are going there to get three points.

"One thing we learned from the semi-final round is that you have to bring the right mentality to play in the tough games on the road and I'm confident we are ready to do that."